Convicted judge to keep his pension

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ERIE, Pa. -- A retired Pennsylvania Superior Court judge will not forfeit his $82,000 annual pension for the insurance fraud that landed him in federal prison for 46 months.

The Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System has determined Michael Joyce's $440,000 insurance fraud conviction wasn't related to his public employment.

Mr. Joyce began serving his sentence at a minimum-security federal prison in West Virginia in April.

The 60-year-old Mr. Joyce was convicted in November of mail fraud and money laundering for allegedly exaggerating neck and back injuries to collect $440,000 in insurance claims stemming from a fender bender in August 2001.

Federal prosecutors are still seeking to forfeit Mr. Joyce's home because they say he used some of the money to pay for it.